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Thursday, April 08, 2010

Anyone who's familiar with my cooking can tell from the list of ingredients that this is a recipe that would appeal to me. This mixture of lemony rice, scallions, red bell peppers, cilantro, and pine nuts can be served cold as a salad, but I actually served it lukewarm as a side dish. The recipe came from Cooking New American, a very old cookbook by the editors of Fine Cooking magazine, a place where I always find great recipes. Despite having quite a few ingredients, this was a simple side dish, and when I tried it out on my friend Bonnie, she liked the combination.

Saute the green onions for a few minutes, then add the rice and saute 2-3 minutes more. (I used Uncle Ben's Converted Rice, which is the lowest-glycemic type of white rice.)

Then add the stock and let the rice cook for 16 minutes.

While the rice cooks, zest the lemon and squeeze the juice, finely chop the red bell pepper, and chop the cilantro. (I think this would be good with parsley if you're not a fan of cilantro.)

After 16 minutes, check to see that the liquid is mostly absorbed, then turn off heat and let the rice sit covered for 5 minutes.

Then fluff the rice with a fork and let it cool 20 minutes (for a lukewarm side dish) or 40 minutes (to serve as a rice salad.)

When you're ready to assembly the dish, lightly toast pine nuts for about one minute in a dry frying pan.

Stir the lemon juice, lemon zest, diced red bell pepper, and chopped cilantro plus the second T of olive oil together in a small bowl, then stir in to the rice and mix to combine, then toss in the pine nuts and gently mix in. (You might want to save a few pine nuts to garnish the top of the serving dish.)

Instructions:
Heat 1 T oil in a large heavy pot with a tight-fitting lid. Add the scallions and saute 2-3 minutes, or until they are starting to soften. Then add the rice and saute 2-3 minutes more. Add the stock (being careful because it will sputter from the hot pan.) Bring rice to a boil, then reduce to a low simmer, cover pan, and cook 16 minutes. (Use a timer if you have one.)

While rice cooks, zest the lemon (grate off the yellow part of the peel), then squeeze lemon juice. (I would measure to be sure you have at least 2 1/2 T lemon juice, and squeeze another lemon if needed.) Finely dice 1/2 cup red bell pepper, and chop the cilantro.

After 16 minutes, check rice to be sure the stock is mostly absorbed, then turn off heat and let the rice sit covered for 5 minutes. Then uncover rice, fluff with a fork and let it cool for 20 minutes (to serve as a lukewarm side dish) or 40 minutes (to serve as a rice salad.)

When rice has cooled to your preference, combine the lemon zest, lemon juice, chopped red bell pepper, chopped cilantro, and second tablespoon of olive oil in a small bowl, then stir into the rice. Taste to see if you want a bit more lemon juice, and season to taste with salt and fresh ground black pepper. Toast pine nuts in a dry pan for about 1 minute (until they barely start to brown, be careful not to burn!) Toss pine nuts into the rice and stir again, saving a few pine nuts to garnish the top of the serving bowl if desired. Serve immediately.

This would probably keep in the refrigerator for a day, but let come to room temperature again before serving.

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Oh, Kalyn - I love that cookbook, have made so many dishes from it. Of course, I'm also a huge fan of Fine Cooking magazine

This past weekend I made this exact recipe, but used whole wheat couscous instead of rice - and slivered almonds instead of pine nuts, worked quite well too (unfortunately my photos are no good, therefore: no blog! :-(

Yes, I cooked this in an enamel-coated cast iron post. I love this kind of pan. If I had lots of money I might be LeCreuset or Staub, but the two I have are this one made by Chantal and a slightly smaller blue one made by Cuisinart. Both of them work great. I got both my pans at TJ Maxx I think about $30 for the small one and $40 for the bigger one, so I'd check that kind of store if you're looking for a bargain.

I don't think I'd use a rice cooker for this, because browning the onions and then cooking the rice in that same oil develops a lot of the flavor. If you do decide to try it, I'd love to hear how it turns out.

I substituted limes, coriander and slivered almonds because that's what I had on hand. I also added cherry tomatoes. My hubby and I both agreed it is the best rice I've ever made and we are both major rice lovers. We had it warm tonight but I'll use the leftovers as a cold rice salad tomorrow. Thanks for the recipe.

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